When Donald Trump excused his lewd, explosive conversation with Billy Bush from 2005 as “locker room talk,” my ears pricked up and not just because the gender wars he’s engendered have been such excellent fodder for a blog titled “The Games Men Play.”
In my forthcoming novel “The Penalty for Holding” (Less Than Three Press, 2017), about a gay, biracial quarterback’s quest for identity, acceptance, success and love in the NFL, I have a couple of locker room moments in which women are discussed and even confronted in a less than respectful manner. ...
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Read MoreWe take a break from the Olympics to reflect on a disturbing story that led many newspapers and programs Saturday – the report on the hazing of former Miami Dolphin Jonathan Martin, which paints an ugly portrait of homophobia, misogyny, racism and inappropriate touching.
The report concludes that teammate Richie Incognito and his acolytes John Jerry and Mike Pouncey harassed not only Martin but another young offensive lineman and an assistant trainer. Particularly revolting were the sexual comments about Martin’s sister, who has nothing to do with any of this. (Incognito’s lawyer, Mark Schamel, has said the report is replete with errors.) Whatever took place was so unnerving to Martin that he left the team and sought psychiatric help.
What is going on here? In an Op-Ed piece for the Feb. 15 edition of The New York Times, Nicholas Dawidoff, author of “Collision Low Crossers: A Year Inside the Turbulent world of NFL Football,” suggests that homophobia is the sport’s shield against its inherent homoeroticism. Think about it – all those men bending over, passing the ball between their legs, piling on top of one another, often in the most violent ways. Then there’s the intensity of the locker room with its attendant nudity. Read more
Read MoreWelcome, dear readers, to a blog that I hope will be a provocative and fun commentary and complement to my novel “Water Music,” the first in a series on “The Games Men Play” – athletic, psychological, cultural and erotic. Due out 1/14/14, “Water Music” tells the story of four male athletes – rivals, friends and lovers – and how their shifting professional fortunes color their personal relationships. Here you’ll find more about the book and me and how you can order it from Greenleaf Book Group and Amazon.com.
You’ll also find a number of poems related to “Water Music” and the second novel in the series, “In This Place You Hold Me,” about a quarterback’s search for identity – sexual, racial and familial – in the beautiful, brutal world of the NFL. We’ve added the first chapter here to give you a taste of and for it.
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